Inspirations

Don’t Cramp Your Toddler’s Style – The Power Of Trust

“There are certain things children are obliged to do, but in play where there is no obligation, they come to something new and fresh. Play is a trying out experimenting. It’s not a joke, children don’t play for fun. They play for real, and adults don’t understand that; they laugh at what children do. To children, play is very serious.” –Educator Margaret Flinsch Imagine you and the...

Surprising Things Babies Might Do (If Given The Chance)

Important Disclaimer: the ‘might do’ things discussed in this post should not be construed as things your baby should be able to do. This list is not intended to cause an iota of parental worry, a smidgen of doubt. Infants and toddlers develop skills at highly individual rates and need to be trusted to do so in their own perfect time. The purpose of this post is all positive, a friendly reminder that our...

The Case Against Tummy Time: Guest Post by Irene Gutteridge

Does your baby like tummy time? Most don’t, for good reason. Until infants are able to roll into the tummy position on their own, most of them find it uncomfortable, immobilizing, and no doubt highly discouraging.  But rather than listen to our babies, we are asked to put our faith in recent studies about plagiocephaly (flat-headedness), studies that don’t take into account the fact that infants are now...

RIE Parenting – A Respectful Debate

Infant expert Magda Gerber never shied away from controversy.  She knew that her child care approach was an uncommon one, often misinterpreted. In fact, she invited conflicting opinions, would even inquire, “What do you disagree with?” She’d then argue her point of view with spirited enthusiasm, a gleam in her eyes and (always) respect for her challenger. I was reminded of Magda’s appreciation of a good...

I Can’t Part With These Books

As I was packing up mountains of ‘baby’ books from the shelves in my 9 year old son’s room recently, his 14 year old sister and I had a revelation. Several of these books (moved to his room years ago when both big sisters grew out of them) have become much, much more than just books to us. They’re part of our family lore. And they’re not going anywhere. We’re saving them for the precious memories…and...

To My First Baby

This one’s personal…a graduation letter to my daughter that I never intended to post. But then it occurred to me that these reflections and recollections (some of them found in an old journal) might inspire you to record some of your own. Dear Charlotte, Such a monumental time in the life of such a monumental girl (funny, I kept typing “momumental”), which must be why this letter has been hard for me to...

An Act Of Infant Kindness

This mom’s discovery was too good not to pass along… Hi Janet, An amazing thing happened this past weekend that I wanted to share — maybe it’s only amazing to a first time mom who’s amazed by everything, so bear with me! We went to a music group with my 11 month old son and there are several “instruments” (wooden sticks and shakers, silk cloths) that we all have and bring with us to group. A little...

Fearless Baby, Empowered By Risk (Surprising Video!)

This video is somewhat shocking at first glance – just about every glance, actually. Even when my 9 year old daredevil son saw it, he exclaimed disapprovingly, “You let her get on the table again?!” The “table” is actually just a wooden platform a few inches high, a focus of interest and activity for babies in the RIE Parent/Infant Guidance Classes. The 8 month old baby in the video is an extraordinarily...